Healthy Living

Do you or someone in your family have Diabetes and a Heart Condition? On Warfarin? Having trouble finding recipes that ae low in Sodium and low in Carbohydrates? Look no further.

ChezMishaLee has created a Healthy Living Lifestyle Cookbook with over 200 recipes that are low sodium and low carbohydrate! Not those dull boring tasteless ones, but how about Tex-Mex Chili? or Apple Turkey Stuffing (see below for that recipe in this blog!) and many more.

Did you know that certain leafy green vegetables can be dangerous if you're on Warfarin therapy? Also included in the Healthy Living Lifestyle Cookbook is an index of Warfarin Watch foods.

Now the Good Stuff!

Apple-Nut Stuffing

a low fat, low carb and moderate sodium recipe

Ingredients:

* 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts, almonds or pecans. Do not finely chop but leave chunky enough to taste and feel the crunch. If using almonds soak and remove shells or just buy slivered almonds!

* 2 tablespoons butter. Yes ,real butter is OK! (no salt variety)

* 1 large yellow onion, diced

* 2 celery stalks, diced

* 1 1/2 apples, ideally Granny Smith or another firm tart variety, peeled and diced into quarter inch cubes

* 1/4 cup apple juice

* 1 large egg

* 4 cups day-old country-style bread, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

* 3 tablespoons seasoning mixture: combine the follwoing in a small mortar and use a pestal to crunch and blend: 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground sage, pinch of rosemary, pinch of thyme and pinch of oregano. Crunch and blend with pestal

* 1 cup fresh parsley with stems removed, coarsely chopped

* 1 cup chicken stock (low sodium on label!)

1. Pre-heat oven to 325°F and lightly toast chopped nuts on a cookie sheet for 10 minutes. No need to use oil or water. Check about half way through and stir if necessary. After 10 minutes set aside and let cool.

2. Use a large saute pan and met the butter over medium heat. Sauté chopped onions, celery and apples for approximately 10 minutes, or until they begin to brown. Stir every few minutes to prevent buildup on bottom of pan.

3. Remove pan from the heat and stir in apple juice, using the liquid to loosen up any brown bits from the pan.
4. In a large bowl, beat egg until fluffy. Add bread, seasoning mixture, parsley, chicken stock, nuts and the sauteed onions, celery and apples. Toss thoroughly to ensure the bread is moistened and all ingredients are mixed well.

5. To cook inside turkey: Place stuffing in the turkey cavity (but do not over-stuff) and cook turkey as directed.

6. Bake any leftover stuffing in a shallow baking dish or cupcake pan at 350°F for approximately 30 minutes, or until a crisp crust has formed on top. All of the stuffing can be cooked in a large baking dish if desired.

Makes 8 servings of approximately 5 ounces (144.07g).

ENJOY !

Nutrititional Information Per Serving: Calories: 205; Calories from Fat: 57%; Total Fat: 13 g; Saturated Fat: 3 g; Unsaturated Fat: 10 g; Trans Fat: 0 g; Cholesterol: 35 mg; Sodium: 135 mg; Potassium: 292 mg; Carbohydrates: 18 g; Fiber: 3 g; Protein: 5 g

Chez MishaLee
At Home with MishaLee...a lifestyle blog for self development and inner growth. Recipes, wine, healthly living tips, no sweat exercises all in one grat place!
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LifeStyle Living with Chez MishaLee

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Let's Talk Wine
Wine Words

For many of us the vocabulary used to describe wine is unfamiliar. Often, we may be intimidted by not knowing the "politically correct" word to describe what we are tasting in a particular glass of wine.

No Worries! Wine words is here to help.

Age...I don't know about most of you but I for one am not going to grow old gracefully but rather fight it all the way!

However, where wine is concerned getting older under controlled conditions most often improves the wine's flavour. All wine is aged, some only for a few weeks others to many years. Oh! And please don't save that bottle of champagne! Most do not get better with age. Now, back to the wine...Aging in barrels is a very slow oxidationand many vinyards are noving away from barrel aging infavor of stainless casks. While the barrels can impart flavors to the wine, most notably oak, aging in the bottle allows the wine to soften and harmonize. Eventually however, all wine will decline in the bottle and get a vinegary taste. When that happens it is not fit for drinking but can eaisly be used for cooking and salad dressings.

The Take Home Message: Balance** A tasting term, that indicates whether the variable flavours such as fruit, acid, smoke, cherry, chocolate, wood etc. are in the right proportion. Now, go forth and experiment with a couple of your favorite wines and food pairings.

Remeber...have fun and taste responsibly!

Let's Talk Wine

Wine Words



For many of us the vocabulary used to describe wine is unfamiliar. Often, we may be intimidted by not knowing the "politically correct" word to describe what we are tasting in a particular glass of wine.


No Worries! Wine words is here to help.


Let's start with two that confused me for a long time until I began a little experiment at one of my favoirte local wine clubs...the Galleon.

What does it mean when someone says that red wines have alot of tannin? Or for that matter, anything about tannin. And someone else comments on the acidity. Isn't that the same thing?

Well, not exactly and, yes and no... so here goes:


Acidity: Acidity is a substance that makes wine taste sharp but also contributes to the bouquet and brilliance as well as structure of the wine. Can have too much or too little. When a wine has too little acidity, it is often described as “flat” and lacks structure. In other words, it doesn't create a sparkle in the eye of the beholder. When a wine has too little sugar and too much acidity, it is often tart or sour tasting. Acids also affect the color of the wine. In red wine, the most acidity is bright red. As the color mellows to purple then bluish, the acidity mellows with it. When you drink white wine, you notice the tart, zingy flavor that makes your tongue salivate a little but this usually has a citrusy taste, nice and refreshing in the lighter summer wines. When you drink red wine, you might have a tart feeling, too (the acid), but what you most notice is a drying, puckery feeling that seems to roll down the middle of your tongue and coat your mouth. The wine feels complex. That’s the tannins in the red wine. Now let's look at tannins more closely...

Tannin: Tannins add dryness and astringency (like witch hazel, but I don't recommend tasting it! ) They provide structure and backbone to the wine . Tannin comes from the seeds, stems, skins, and the barrels. Dark grapes with thick skins have more tannin than grapes with thin skins. Hence, more tannin in red wine as it is made from the whole grape and sometimes the stems too. White wines on the otherhand, most often are made from the grape and not the skins or stems. Smaller grapes have more tannins than bigger grapes and wine that uses more stems in the fermentation process has more tannin than those that don't. The way you usually identify tannins in the wine is by its mouth drying effect, ah, the astringency! It's a mouth feel, not a taste. Certain foods, especially ones with a high fat content like blue cheese, can counteract or balance the tannin in wine and make them easier to drink. That's why food pairing are inmportant and some wines can be pleasant without food while othes blossom with a good food pairing. Pairings can be versatile and experimentation is always encouraged. Just remember the basics of balance. Tannins are considered desirable in wines that are meant to be aged; because over time, the tannins soften and add to the complexity of a well-aged red wine.


The Take Home Message: Balance

** the less tannic a wine is, the more acidity it can support
** the higher a red wine is in tannins, the lower should be its acidity

Now, go forth and experiment with a couple of red wines with tomato based food pairings and a white or two just for contrast! Remeber...have fun and taste responsibly!

LifeStyle Living with Chez MishaLee

Chef MishaLee is a Medical Doctor who offers lifestyle living changes through integration of the mind, body and soul. Self development tools and healthy living in one great place!



MishaLee has always enjoyed cooking and entertaining. Before becoming a physician, she lived and worked in New York for a multinational company where her job took her to nearly every country in the world. She began collecting recipes and cooking for dinner parties. Then, her best friend had open heart surgery. He thought his life over having eat mundane and bland low carb and low sodium food. She was determined to develop “tasty’” and even a bit spicey foods for his enjoyment. Other friends and neighbors enjoyed the recipes and Voila! Chez MishaLee was born. Taking this skill one step further, she developed a series of personal lifestyle enrichment tools for self development. Her knowledge and training as a physician led her seek and share the secrets of healthy living.

Coming Soon . . .
Chez MishaLee Web Site with recipes from her new Enjoy Life Cookbook, over 200low carb and low sodium combined recipes. It's easyu to find low carb or low sodium recipes but many people need both in the same recipe.
Mind, Body and Soul … tools for Personal Growth and Development, a life enrichment course